Department of Justice

Lovington Man Sentenced to Prison for Violating Federal Firearms Laws

ALBUQUERQUE – Baret Wayne Smith, 28, of Lovington, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 51 months in prison for violating the federal firearms laws by being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition. Smith will be on supervised release for three years after completing his prison sentence.

Smith was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed in April 2016, with unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition and body armor on Jan. 22, 2016, in Lea County, N.M. According to the complaint, law enforcement officers arrested Smith, who was wearing a bulletproof vest, based on two outstanding warrants. During a search incident to Smith’s arrest, the officers seized ammunition, methamphetamine, a glass pipe commonly used for smoking methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in Smith’s pockets. The officers also seized a firearm from Smith’s vehicle. Court documents indicate that months earlier, on Nov. 12, 2015, officers found multiple rounds of ammunition in Smith’s clothing after he was taken to a hospital in Hobbs, N.M., where he was treated for a gunshot wound to the stomach.

Smith subsequently was indicted on Nov. 8, 2017, and was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. According to the indictment, Smith was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because of his numerous felony convictions. Smith pled guilty to the indictment without the benefit of a plea agreement on Nov. 14, 2017.

This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the New Mexico State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander B. Shapiro of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office is prosecuting the case.